He looked at her, studying her in a way that made her blush deepen. “All right, then.” He didn’t even try not to grin. “Thanks for breakfast. I’ll see you at dinner.”
Mandy was still stewing about their encounter when she walked into Ivy’s Diner in town later that morning. Her discussion with Rocco had left her too disconcerted to make a normal start in her day. She needed to get some groceries, which was as good an excuse as any to stop in and have a cup of coffee with her friend.
Ivy was two years older than Mandy, but they’d been close friends ever since she’d started taking riding lessons from Mandy’s grandfather while they were in grade school. She left town with her family after her sophomore year in high school-right after the scandal with Kit. They’d reconnected online a few years back. Mandy had been thrilled when Ivy decided to come back to Wolf Creek Bend and reopen the diner.
At ten in the morning, the diner had few customers. She’d caught them between the morning and lunch rushes. Celia was running the counter when Mandy sat down. She flipped the thick china mug over and filled it with coffee.
“What else can I get for you, sweetie?” she asked.
“Just the coffee. Is Ivy in?”
“She’s in the office. I’ll go get her.”
Mandy looked around the cheery dining room. Booths with teal vinyl seats lined the walls. The tables and counter were edged in chrome. The look was definitely retro. Ivy had said she had an investor who’d funded the diner and its renovations. Having had to scrounge up funding for her own construction project, Mandy was happy Ivy had found the means to make her dream happen. It had been a big hit in town ever since she’d opened it almost a year ago.
“Mandy! I don’t often get to see you during the day!” Ivy took one look at her and knew something was up. Mandy guessed her problems were written all over her face. She gave Ivy a poor attempt at a smile. “You know, I’ve got a ton of paperwork to do in the back. Why don’t you join me? We can talk while I work.” She picked up Mandy’s coffee and headed to the back, clearly not taking “No” for an answer.
When Mandy walked into the neat little office, Ivy shut the door behind her. “Spill. You’re face is flushed and it’s not even windy outside. What’s going on?”
Mandy covered her face. “Ivy, I’m in trouble.”
“What kind of trouble?”
“Man trouble.”
“So it’s true! You do have a hot boy toy stashed at your house. One smokin’ hot Rocco Silas, as I understand it.”
“Who told you about him?”
“Officer Jerry’s friendly with a couple of the guys working on your riding center. He’s been complaining about your hiring yourself a man. I think he did a background check on him-for your safety, of course-but didn’t find anything.”
“Ugh. He’s being vindictive because I wouldn’t go out with him.”
Ivy sat on the edge of her desk and waggled her eyebrows at Mandy. “So? Tell me. Everything.”
“He’s gorgeous. Tall. Dark. Mysterious. Moody. Angry.”
“Mm-mm. How is he in bed?”
“I wouldn’t know. We don’t-we aren’t-it’s not like that. He’s been diagnosed with PTSD. I think he has it bad, too. He won’t eat. Doesn’t sleep. He looks,” Mandy paused, searching for the right word, “haunted.”
Ivy sighed. “I’m sorry, Em. That’s tough to deal with.”
“I don’t know what to do to help him. Kit says to tackle one thing at a time. He wants me to get him to eat, but Rocco seems to have an aversion to food.” As soon as she saw the shadow that crossed Ivy’s face, she realized she shouldn’t have mentioned her brother.
“Why don’t you visit Dr. Crowley? For a shrink, he’s easy to talk to. I’ve met with him a time or two. Or talk to the sheriff. He served in the first Gulf War. He might remember some of things he faced coming back to the States.”
“You went to Dr. Crowley?” Mandy asked, shocked that her friend had been to see the town psychologist.
Ivy shrugged. “It hasn’t been easy moving back here. So many memories. So many shadows.”
Mandy took her hand. “Do you regret coming back?”
“No. Not at all. It was the right thing for Casey. And for me as well.”
Casey was Ivy’s twelve-year-old daughter. Ivy’s and Kit’s. “I think Kit’ll be back soon. He’s worried about the construction problems I’ve been having. That’s why he sent Rocco over. They served together.”
Ivy folded her arms. “That’s nice,” she said with a smile that held no joy. “So what happened that set you off today?”
“I had to tell Rocco a secret to get him to eat.”
“Did you?” Ivy grinned. “What did you tell him?”
“I told him that I once had a crush on Ty.”
Ivy’s jaw dropped. “Ty Bladen. You did not.”
“I was twelve, Ivy. I had a crush on everyone.”
Ivy held up her hands. “No. I think you have good taste. Ty’s gorgeous. He serves with Kit and your Rocco, doesn’t he?”
“He’s not my Rocco. And he did serve with them. I think he’s getting out. Rocco said he was injured.”
“Badly?”
“Shot in the leg. I don’t know how severe his injury is.”
“Wow. That’s awful. I hope, for his sake, it’s not too major.” Ivy handed Mandy her now-cold coffee. “But I know just what you need to do about your hired man.” Mandy eyed her warily. “We’re going shopping. Then Friday night, you’ll bring Mr. SexOnAStick to Winchester’s for some drinking and hip grinding. He’ll forget all about his troubles when he sees you in the outfit I have in mind.”
Rocco made the short walk from the bunkhouse to Mandy’s that evening. Hot dry winds had blown across the mountain all day, burning the new spring grass and sucking all the moisture from the ground. The air sat in place now, hot and unmoving, amplifying the growing sense of dread he felt in joining Mandy for supper.
He wanted to see her. He’d thought of little else since breakfast when she divulged her darkest secret. Every time he remembered the way she’d set her chin, her eyes looking straight at his when she told him, his whole body tightened uncomfortably. He felt an unreasonable wash of jealousy as he thought of Blade and Mandy together. She said she’d been a kid at the time, but she wasn’t a kid now. She and Blade would be good for each other. Their lands backed to one another. They had something of a shared history having grown up in the same small town.
So why did he want to plant a fist in his friend’s face? It made no sense. It’s not like Rocco would be starting something with her when he would be leaving soon. No, this was only a dinner, a condition of his employment. He’d eat and get the hell out of there.
If he bungled the whole thing, she’d go back to bringing his suppers down on a tray so that she wouldn’t have to deal with him. It wouldn’t be the end of the world.
He walked up the steps to Mandy’s porch. Taking advantage of the warm weather, she’d set a table on her front porch for their supper. Rocco felt his stomach clench at the explosion of color spread across it. The dishes were a noisy mixture of salmon, yellow, and green ceramic. The napkins were teal cotton. The tablecloth was a bright floral. The pitcher of iced tea was yet another color of blue. The salad bowl was a peach ceramic. The oversized salad servers were orange. He felt a cold sweat break out on his skin. He couldn’t do this. He would break, he knew it.
The kitchen’s screen door closed as Mandy joined him on the porch. He tried to calm his breathing. Her movement through the still air brought him her scent. It was faint. And pleasant. Against the warning of his shouting nerves, he drew her fragrance into himself. Sunshine. She smelled like sunshine and fresh air and the
